Paperweight In 1984 Essay

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The Weight That The Paperweight Holds in 1984 In the novel, 1984, by George Orwell the paperweight has great significance. This story takes place in a dystopian world with extremely strict rules that prohibit any sort of independent thinking or actions. The main character, Winston, finds a paperweight in an antique shop, which plays a major role in his rebellion against the society. The paperweight symbolizes everything that Winston cannot have and everything he hopes for. In the novel, 1984, the paperweight symbolizes hope for a better time where Winston could be happy. The paperweight is symbolic of Winston’s desire to live in a world where he could be happy and take part in activities that do not just benefit everyone beside himself. Orwell narrates Winston making observations…show more content…
The paperweight was the room he was in, and the coral was Julia's life and his own, fixed in a sort of eternity at the heart of the crystal” (Orwell 147). Winston says that the paperweight is his world and the coral is Julia and his relationship. When Winston says this, he shows that he feels that he and Julia are in their own small bubble, isolated away from society, how he wishes it could always be. The connection that Winston makes between the paperweight and his relationship with Julia shows that he desires to live in a world where he could just be happy with her, away from the strict society. The paperweight symbolizes the hope that he has for this. The paperweight also proves to be very significant in the next piece of evidence when the paperweight breaks. When the thought police catches Winston, Orwell narrates that, “There was another crash. Someone had picked up the glass paperweight and smashed it to pieces on the hearthstone” (Orwell 223). In this piece of evidence, the

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